The art of teaching horseback riding involves instruction in many physical functions including balance, use of the hands, legs, and feet, and also in use of the voice. All of these functions are combined to enable the rider to control the horse and maximize the enjoyment of riding. In the past, most teaching is done by an instructor who is off the horse and attempting to verbally instruct the student rider who is on the horse.
When it is desirable to be on the horse with the student, doing so is exceptionally difficult because of conventional design of English or western saddles. Frequently the instructor sits behind the saddle and attempts to handle the reins and work with the student who is on the saddle. Such positioning can make it very difficult for the instructor to get a sense of the student's balance and use of physical coordination in riding. Additionally, it can also be difficult from such a position to control a horse that may be highly annoyed at having two riders thereon.
Horseback riding has become a relatively new approach for use in physical therapy and also in recreational therapy for handicapped persons. Therapists have discovered that riding not only provides a great deal of physical therapy in that it stimulates healing and/or development in many groups of muscles, but riding also has been found to be beneficial in mental therapy. When riding is being taught or utilized as a therapeutic method, the ability of the instructor actually to be on the horse with the student is extremely important. Not only is the instructor better able to determine how the student is responding and progressing, but in many instances the student is completely unable to remain on the horse or control the horse without the instructor.
Existing saddles used for training or riding in tandem have proved unsatisfactory in many ways. U.S. Pat. Nos. numbered 3,112,592; 3,234,710; 3,266,218; 3,916,604; and 4,362,003 all disclose "piggyback" or small auxiliary saddles which are attached to primary, full-size English or Western saddles. U.S. Pat. No. 3,916,604 is specifically directed to a training saddle wherein a smaller training saddle is removably attached to the horn on a full-size saddle. Saddles of this type do not enable the student to obtain a true sensation of riding such as is obtained by mounting the primary saddle and being able to feel or sense the movement and response of the horse. Such saddles are also subject to failure during riding because the auxiliary saddle may become disengaged from the primary saddle. Further, use of many such saddles requires use of a primary saddle of a particular type.
It was to overcoming such problems that the present inventor turned in developing the saddle disclosed herein. The improved saddle is of a design which enables two riders to comfortably mount a horse and ride in tandem on the single saddle. The one saddle comfortably seats two, includes two sets of stirrups, and a hand grip at the front of the saddle for the student or forwardly seated rider to grip.
The present saddle is particularly well suited for teaching very young children to ride, or for therapeutic use with handicapped children or adults. The student or young rider is mounted in front of the instructor on a forward seat portion having a pair of stirrups associated therewith. The student uses the hand grip at the front of the saddle to maintain balance. The instructor is preferably seated behind the student on the second, rear seat portion and grasps the reins around the student. From this position the instructor has full control of the horse and can also sense the responses and movement of the student.
Because the student is seated directly on the saddle, rather than on a secondary, auxiliary saddle, the student gets full benefit of the riding experience; sensing firsthand the movements and behavior of the horse. Yet, because the instructor is on the horse with the student, the student has a sense of security that enables him or her to relax and enjoy the experience to the maximum. Such positive instruction and riding experiences are virtually impossible with previously known training saddles.
The unique training saddle is generally of a layered construction having an upper, outer layer of leather; a supporting underlayer, preferably made of felt; and a cushioning member of foam rubber stitched between the two layers. The cushion member is positioned in the approximate middle of the layers, and is configured to define the aforementioned front and rear seat portions. The hand grip is comprised of a length of leather rolled and stitched to form a strap that is stitched by each end thereof to the front of the saddle. Billet straps and a standard girth are attached to the felt underlayer. Stirrup bars are also attached to the underlayer for receiving a first pair of stirrups associated with the forward seat portion, and a second pair of stirrups associated with the rear seat portion. Generally, the first pair of stirrups are of a shorter, smaller size to accomodate a young student. However, it is obvious that both pairs of stirrups can be adult size if required.
A separate, one-inch thick foam rubber pad, cut to fit under the training saddle is used for the comfort and protection of the horse.
Thus designed, the present invention satisfies a primary objective of providing a single saddle which will accomodate two persons riding in tandem. Another primary objective is met in the provision of a training saddle whereby the instructor and the student are mounted on a single saddle and the student can accurately sense the actions and response of the horse, and the instructor can immediately determine the student's reactions thereto.